European Business Schools Librarian's Group

ESSEC Working Papers,
ESSEC Research Center, ESSEC Business School

No WP1310: Coordination in Teams: A Real Effort-task Experiment with Informal Punishment

Radu Vranceanu (), Fouad El Ouardighi () and Delphine Dubart ()
Additional contact information
Radu Vranceanu: ESSEC Business School, Postal: Avenue Bernard Hirsch, B.P. 50105, 95021 CERGY-PONTOISE Cedex, FRANCE,
Fouad El Ouardighi: ESSEC Business School, Postal: Avenue Bernard Hirsch, B.P. 50105, 95021 CERGY-PONTOISE Cedex, FRANCE,
Delphine Dubart: ESSEC Business School, Postal: Avenue Bernard Hirsch, B.P. 50105, 95021 CERGY-PONTOISE Cedex, FRANCE,

Abstract: This paper reports the results from a real-effort team production experiment, where best performers can impose either tacit or explicit sanctions on their less-performing partners. The behavior of the best performer in the team differs from one condition to another. When explicit sanctions are not allowed, good performers reduce their effort in response to the advantageous difference in scores; when they can impose sanctions, their change in effort is no longer related to the difference in scores. To some extent, a mechanism of explicit sanctions allows good performers to focus on their own performance. Not sanctioning an opponent who under-performs, what we refer to as forgiveness, prompts the latter to improve his performance, but applying the sanction has a stronger effect.

Keywords: Team work; Performance; Experimental economics; Punishment

JEL-codes: C92; D03; M52

28 pages, August 2013

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WP1310.pdf PDF-file 

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